Review: Sorkin’s Biographical Drama ‘Being the Ricardos’ is Brought Down Somewhat by its Ambitious and Muddled Narrative

Nicole Kidman and Javier Bardem star as comedy icons Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz in Aaron Sorkin’s mildly-entertaining biographical drama “Being the Ricardos.” The film follows the Hollywood couple as they face a crisis that could destroy both their careers and their relationship. Bardem and Kidman star alongside a well-rounded cast that includes J.K. Simmons, Nina Arianda, and Jake Lacy.

Sorkin brings the eventful lives of Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz to the screen with his film. He combines multiple parts of the couple’s life and careers into the film, condensing years into a simple 131 minutes. “Being the Ricardos” details the aftermath of things like when Ball was accused of being a communist in 1952, the fallout of the accusation, Ball’s 1952-53 pregnancy, and speculations of Arnaz’s infidelity. Faced with issue-after-issue, will the couple make it through unscathed, or will they crumble under the pressure?

A Mix Between Drama and Documentary

Despite being a relatively solid biopic, Sorkin feels the need to elbow in documentary-style clips with actors playing older versions of Tony Hale, Alia Shawkat, and Jack Lacy’s characters (Jess Oppenheimer, Madelyn Pugh, and Bob Carroll respectively). The mix between drama and faux documentary adds nothing, and instead draws the viewer out of Sorkin’s narrative. Kidman and Bardem also lack any sort of romantic chemistry, and their relationship can’t help but come across as stale, which ends up dragging the film down. Despite the lack of chemistry between them, Kidman and Bardem both manage to give strong performances in their respective roles. Kidman does a great job of capturing Ball’s spirit and the actress’ well-known husky voice, while Bardem brings Arnaz’s charisma and charm to the screen. 

Sorkin’s attempt to juggle so many things in the span of 131 minutes results in the film feeling scattered in a rushed attempt to adequately cover all the plot points. However, the electric dialogue itself somewhat salvages the jumbled screenplay. “Being the Ricardos” does seem to deal with some themes that would’ve been predominant throughout the classical Hollywood scene, including the treatment of women and minorities within the industry, and the TV and film censorship during that period. Alia Shawkat’s character also comes across as a mouthpiece for concerns over Lucy being infantilised on the show.

A Solid Drama, but a Muddled Narrative

Additionally, with two comedy icons as the subject of the film, you’d think that it would feature some sort of humour or comedic quips, but the film takes the more dramatic route, starving audiences of even smallest bit of comedy despite centering on two of Hollywood’s biggest comedians. 

Aaron Sorkin’s third outing in the director’s chair is a solid drama that reaffirms that the acclaimed screenwriter should probably stay away from pulling double duty and probably stick to writing scripts. Featuring convincing performances from Nicole Kidman and Javier Bardem, “Being the Ricardos” is a film that suffers from a muddled narrative; it could’ve been a lot better if it hadn’t tried to compress years of this couple’s lives into a two-hour affair. 

“Being the Ricardos” is available to watch on Amazon and other streaming services.